The Indianapolis journal., 1887-07-01
COLLEGE MEN IN JOURNALISM.
Editor Plumbe Presents Some Statistics and
Makes Some Comparisons.

MIDDLEBuRG, VT, June 30-At the COM
mencement of Middleburg College, to-day Mr..
George E. Plumbe, of the Chicago Daily News,
delivered an address upon 'sThe Press and Col
lege" before the alumni. After referring to the
fact that of the is, 900 papers printed in the
English language. 1000 are published in
America he spoke Of their relation to institutes
of learning, saying:
''Of the four most prominent journals in the
city Of New York, two are managed by college
graduates Upon the editorial and reportorial
23l persons. of whom l04, or 40 per centum, are
graduates of colleges Only of the four
leading newspapers of Philadelphia is edited by
a collegiate. They employ in the aggregate, as
editorial and reportorial writers, 134 persons, OF
whom twenty-sight 81 per centum have an
academic training. Of the four great daiies in
editorial management of person literally edu-
Gated, and of the 132 men upon their stats
thirty-one, or 233 per centum have a
scholastic training Boston, the Ath-
of its four leading aazettes under the editorial
direction of a collegiate. They employ on their
writing staffs 252 persons, of whom forty-one,
or only 16 per centum have collegiate education
Boston. which has, within days journey more
colleges of the highest repute than any other
city on the continent whose journals employ,
numerically, more literary men than those of
any other city in the United States, draws a
smaller proportion of them from the college than
Louis has three newspapers of influence, one of
which is edited by university graduate. They
employ seventy-two persons, of whom eighteen,
% per centum are graduates of collegiate in
sttutions Com bining these statistics. we ind
that six only of the nineteen strong and influen-
tial journals in the five great commercial centers
of the country are edited by classically educated
men; that they give employment to 81 persons.
of whom only 222. fraction more than twenty
six in the hundred, have avaiied themselves
of the advantages that the American college
offs 70 Ynan n
Make the selection never so carefully and our
higher institutions of learning cannot make
better showing in any other city in the country,
for these nineteen journals. worth in the aggrs-
gate more than $l5, ,000.0 900. spare no expense to
secure the best journalistic ability the country
possesses. while it is to these aud other large
cities that the best culture and brain naturally
gravitates for employment and recognition. 1t
is entirely within reason to say that W Ter
centum of the clergymen OF these hve cities are
college bred, and yet the editorial writer on any
of these papers addresses larger audience
every day in his respective city than all the
clergymen in it do on the Sabbath. AS a moral
power the secular press of the United States Is
mightier among the masses than the pulpit but
I do not believe a careful census OF the Journal
lists the secular press of the United States
would show that over TWO In hundred nave
ever enjoyed any better educational advantages
than those afforded by the common and high
schools of the country"
Mr.. Plumbe thought the reason for the en-
ployment of small number of college men
leading newspapers is that most of them
came from the rural districts, where their IDEAS
of a newspaper gathered from the hebdcm-
adal print of the country village, which awakens
neither their regard their interest, and
instinctively they rank its editor as the equal
of the village justice and postmaster, but by no
means the peer of the local pettifogger or the
country parsop. Moreover, most students have
made their choice of vocations before they
matriculate at colleee but he believed that if
more students would delay the selection OF
profession until they have been out of college
year large number of them would be attracted
to journalism.